As today (Jan. 14), marks Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl's 47th birthday, a school of Ethiopian kids have come together to sing the Nirvana classic, "Smells Like Teen Spirit," in tribute to the former drummer of the band's special day.
The video was compiled by Peace Corps volunteer Matt Westerberg, who recently used the song's lyrics to help teach his students at Yechila Secondary School the English language, a rocking way to do so we might add.
The clip shows the students singing the song's lyrics (with heavy accents, as expected) over the instrumental track. The video ends with a message on the class blackboard which reads "Special birthday wishes to legendary drummer Dave Grohl."
The children had previously learned to sing Pearl Jam's "Even Flow." According to NME, Westerberg had elaborated on the cover back in September. "I thought it would be funny to have the kids try and learn it," he stated. "They laughed their way through it. The next day, they demanded to try it again."
He added, "After a while we went through most of the song day by day as a motivational tool. At first it was all just a joke, but after awhile, the students began to really build confidence through learning the song."
This is not the first instance of a foreign country paying tribute to Grohl's music, with 1,000 citizens of Cessena, Italy recently banding together to perform a cover of the Foo Fighters' song "Learn to Fly" in an open field in unison. The goal of that collective, dubbed Rockin' 1000, was to get the band to perform a rare show in their suburban hometown, to which the band obliged.
Rockin' 1000 again recently recorded a cover of the Foo Fighters' latest single "Saint Cecilia" off of their new free EP of the same name, which was released in dedication to the victims of the Paris terrorist attacks late last year. The Cessena fans recorded their own version of the track from their respective homes with the organizers later splicing the results together.
